The best seat in the house is the view from the couch

Farewell and adieu, to you fair Spanish pitcher...

Four Years, Fifty-Three Million Dollars.

It actually seems like a small amount, when you consider that the New York Mets just hired the player that I once thought would be the first, if not only one to top the yearly salary of Alex Rodriguez.

So, Petey is a Met.

Eh.

Seriously, that’s about the only emotional response I can come up with.

He did what he was brought to Boston to do – deliver a World Series Championship. Unfortunately, when next season rolls around, he will have to get his ring from a PO Box somewhere in downtown New York rather than in front of 30,000 fans going insane in Fenway, in front of tears and flashbulbs, and the New York Yankees.

I’m really not sure how I’m supposed to act. On the one hand, the Red Sox just lost their best pitcher of my generation. I have no problem putting him ahead of Clemens, in terms of their Red Sox careers. I’m not ready to name him the best Red Sox pitcher ever, considering that the award that defines pitching greatness yearly is named for the greatest Red Sox pitcher ever, Cy Young.

But you see, on the other hand, the Red Sox just rid themselves of a guy that is undoubtedly on the downside of his career. A guy that isn’t very fond of practice, off-season schedules, workouts, normal pitching rotations, Eastern Standard Time, MRI’s, a 30-start season, or generally anything that requires him to conform to team rules and regulations. A pitcher with a partial tear in the labrum in his pitching shoulder – a not too uncommon injury for major league pitchers – that could become a full tear on any day, during any game, on any given pitch.

The Mets guaranteed Pedro Martinez $53-Million over four years, hoping that he would give them the insta-credibility they so sorely need. Their Yankees cross-town rivalry is quickly becoming nothing more than a backyard brawl between the school bully and, well, me or people like me.

So Pedro is gone, and Red Sox Nation must move on. For the time being, we have the Antics of David Wells to replace the antics of Pedro. Edgar Renteria (whose last name is about to become the punch line to about a thousand jokes... Rent-A-Rear) to replace Orlando Cabrera to replace Nomar Garciaparra. Maybe AJ Pierzynski to replace Jason Varitek. Possibly AJ Burnett or Tim Hudson to replace Derek Lowe.

These are no longer the Red Sox I grew up with. Nomar and Mo, Greenwell and Trot, Burks and Barrett. But they haven’t been that for awhile.

As for the rest of the early returns from MLB’s free agency period, here’s what I think...

The Yankees are going to have to take an awful lot less for Kevin Brown, and pay a lot more of his salary if they keep signing starters. Currently, they have Mussina, Brown, Vasquez, Loiaza, Wright, Sturtze and Pavano. I’m no math whiz, but I count seven guys in that group that are either currently starters or have been in the past. Not to mention their ongoing pursuit of Randy Johnson, which would probably have to include Vasquez. They still need to unload Jason Giambi, one way or another. Until they do, their off-season is just a little bit of a bust.

The Red Sox need another starter, and possibly two if Curt Schilling’s ankle isn’t going to be ready before May (I’m not even hoping for Opening Day). Otherwise, they’ve cleaned up the holes in their lineup. They should probably consider dealing either Kevin Millar or Doug Mientkiewicz to free up cash (maybe in a deal for Hudson?).

The Mets, well, I don’t like the money they threw at Petey. I think they overpaid to make a splash, and they are going to be hurt by that deal in about two and a half years. But in 2005, they are getting a pitcher that will be rededicated to his game, will follow all the rules (as they are laid out and bent for him), and will prove to everyone that he is still a premier pitcher. Joining the NL again doesn’t hurt. My prediction? Pedro will be in the top three of the NL Cy Young race in ’05, and out of baseball by June, ’07.

The Angels might have made the best under-the-radar grab to date. Steve Finley gives this team so much more depth that it’s almost unfair. They have a proven center-fielder that can hit, run, and cover ground (and doesn’t cost the 10 years, $200M that Carlos Beltran is asking for). Having Finley allows them to move Garret Anderson back to left field where he belongs. And, best of all, if Anderson can’t handle the ground in left, they can move him to first and put Darin Erstad back in the outfield. They literally have about twelve different combinations that they can use, and they didn’t have to commit to an obscene contract or ship out top-tier prospects to do it. Nice job.

The Diamondbacks have been making the loudest team noises so far, yet no one knows how they are affording it. They owe a ludicrous sum of money to Major League Baseball to pay off past debt. But somehow they found a way to shell out $78 Million dollars in guaranteed contracts to an oft-injured third-baseman in Troy Glaus, and a starting pitcher whose stuff should never really be forced into a rotation spot above a third starter. Your guess is as good as mine at this point.

Everyone else, well, I’ll get to you in February when I write my yearly preview. There are still names to be had (Beltran, Varitek, Johnson, Lowe, Sosa, Hudson, etc.), and their final destinations are completely up in the air as of right now. If I had to guess, I’d say Beltran stays in Houston, Varitek goes back to Boston, Randy Johnson ends up a Yankee, Lowe is a Tiger, Sosa is a Brave, and so is Hudson.

That’s it. Picks tomorrow.

Lata.

posted by Big D @ 10:36 PM